| Cooler Master Cosmos II Computer Case |  |
| Reviews - Featured Reviews: Cases | |
| Written by David Ramsey | |
| Tuesday, 03 January 2012 | |
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Closer Look: ExteriorThe Cosmos II is a very large case, much larger than most full tower cases. The case comprises a steel frame with the trademark Cosmos heavy steel tubes running above and below it. The exterior is largely plastic panels with brushed aluminum trim. You can use the top steel tubes as handles, which is good because this massive case weighs over 47 pounds empty! In my last case review, of the Rosewill Blackhawk-Ultra, I said it was the largest case Benchmark Reviews had ever reviewed. Well, the Cosmos II knocks the Blackhawk-Ultra off that pedestal: it's 3.5" wider, 2.7" taller, and 0.1" deeper...not to mention over 10 pounds heavier!
A signature feature of the Cosmos II is its dramatic, swing-open side panels. Mounted on heavy, motion-damped steel hinges, these doors pivot open from the front of the case. The doors are thick plastic slabs with a brushed aluminum external trim panel, and lift easily off the hinges using the handholds molded into the inside of the door as seen below.
The Cosmos II accessory bundle includes a set of rails for mounting a 2x120mm radiator in place of the lower drive bays, an EPS-12V power extension cable, a bag of assorted screws and standoffs, two sets of keys for the locking external drive bays, and miscellaneous zip ties and adhesive cable holders. A small motherboard speaker and an extremely brief manual (not shown) round out the bundle. 
While the Cosmos II is solid black and eschews side panel windows, it nonetheless is a very striking case.
The right side of the case is as featureless as the left, with only a small set of ventilation strakes to break up the brushed aluminum.
The front of the case reveals the I/O ports, a sliding panel that covers the 5.25" drive bays, and the intake for the front 200mm fan.
The front mesh panel snaps off to reveal the included blue LED-lit 200MM intake fan that blows air over the upper drive bays. There's a space for a 120mm fan below it should you wish to add one. The mesh panel serves as an intake air filter. 
Let's take a closer look at the details of the exterior in the next section.
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Comments
Cosmos 2 is a great case no doubt, but I feel it is a bit on the bulky side. HAF-X is a very good case itself. HAF-X to Cosmos-2 could be a good upgrade only if u plan to buy an XL-ATX board with 240/360 liquid rad cooling or use 3-4 graphics cards.
Overall, though, I think the Blackhawk Ultra would win in the cooling department: it comes with many more (and larger) fans than does the Cosmos II, and there's enough room to mount a thicker 3x120mm radiator at the top (or bottom, if you mount the power supply at the top) than the Cosmos II can handle.
In stock form the Cosmos II would probably be quieter due to its thick plastic side panels.
Either case is a great choice for high-end rigs; the Blackhawk Ultra gives you a lot more bang for the buck at the expense of a very pedestrian appearance.
"At the rear, things aren't as neat. The problem is the morass of fan wiring: with nine separate cables each for fan power and LED, plus a power connector, there are 19 fan-related cables to deal with."
That's another thing I'm at a loos to understand with such a huge case--why not bigger and less fans? This thing should have all 230mm fans in it, except perhaps for the CPU exhaust. Less fans also makes for a cleaner case, and a quieter case too.
I really like this case. Other than the Level 10 I think this is the best Cooler Master case I've seen yet. I would like to point out though that, although I really like the looks of this case, I don't particularly like the two large tubes running front to back on the top. I guess they're supposed to be handles, but I find they really look silly.
It's too bad they didn't put a window on the top half of the left side panel. I know some people don't like Windows, and I didn't used to like them either. However after spending so much money on my most recent build, and talking to some customers about it, I was swayed and purchased a window for my personal computer. I have changed my mind and can see why some people like windows so much.
Personally, I wish case manufacturers would get out of the fan controller business (or make them optional). I prefer a controller that has more data (like RPMs and temps) but I realize many people like built-in controllers and they cannot please everyone (also there may not be enough external bays in this case if one wanted an aftermarket fan controller). However, an expensive case with a poor fan controller does not look good on the manufacturer.
I also wish companies would start making a bay for slim DVD burners. With just a very small space in the PC for a slim drive, the front 5 1/4" bays could be used for more important things (especially considering there are so few of them in this particular case). I also don't understand why there is so much emphasis on hard drive bays these days. With drives being so big, I don't see many people with more than 4 drives. What is it, 13 drives? I think they may have given up a lot of other possible options for so many drive bays that most people wouldn't use anyway (options like more external bays, dedicated 2.5" bays and perhaps a space dedicated to mounting an internal res of some type since this is clearly aimed at the water cooling faction). I'm sure others could come up with more ideas.
However, this is a pretty sweet case and congrats to Cooler Master for putting so much effort into it.
A window in the side panel would require some work since the side panels are so thick, and comprised of multiple layers. But I'd like to see one too.
I wondered if the case would be better if all the upper 3.5" drive bays were removed and the space used for more 5.25" bays, leaving the lower 6 bays for 3.5" drives. Of course that would remove the option to use the lower bay area for a radiator. It's all about choices in configuration, and while I might not agree with all the decisions Cooler Master made for this case, at least you do have a lot of choices.
#benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=808&Itemid=61
For the rig I am running this case was perfect.
Able to fit the biggest dual proc motherboard and multiple video cards without any space problems.
Needed tons of drives (old Cosmos I case only had like 7 total) so this worked as a good upgrade.
Cooling was great even with a ton of stuff in the case (supplemented with additional 120mm and 140mm fans (except on the door - too annoying to service). Not 'quiet' but well within tolerable levels.
Thanks again for the review.
Problems - you cannot use the bottom hard drive bays coz when you use them the cables from the power pack prevent to the door from closing.
I tried to put nearly every cable at the back, letting only 1 cable, the 24 pin cable, to infiltrate the area ( the top side of the motherboard )
A modular power supply helps, too.
It's like the SUVs that so many people use as daily drivers: on one hand, it can hold 5 kids and their soccer equipment and a weeks' worth of groceries. On the other hand it's a # to park and gets terrible mileage.
I'm getting ready for a major build to and I have a cool master H.A.F.
full size tower witch i love they work great and if I need new one 6.00 for a bag of 12